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Catching up U.S. win gold but lose mystique
SYDNEY, Oct 2 (Reuters) - The United States won the men's Olympic basketball gold in Sydney but lost their air of invincibility in a sport they have dominated since their NBA stars began competing in 1992. Coming into the Games, the United States had won all their games by no fewer than 22 points in the Olympics since Barcelona. In that span they had won by an average victory margin of 43.8 points in 1992 and 32.3 points in 1996. Although they stretched their unbeaten streak to 25 games by going a perfect 8-0, this year's team won four of their last five games by 15 points or less, and were almost defeated by eventual bronze medallists Lithuania, barely scraping out a two-point victory. "It's no longer an automatic gold medal," said Milwaukee Bucks guard Ray Allen. "Teams are coming at us with a different look in their eyes, they are certainly more talented than ever before and have nothing to fear and everything to gain." In 1992 the team had such an aura that they were dubbed the "Dream Team" before they had even stepped on the court. Players asked for autographs after being outclassed by the likes of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Charles Barkley and Shaquille O'Neal. BIG TALK No doubt these will go down as some of the greatest names in the sport's history, but they could also back up their big talk and claims of being untouchable with the sound fundamental play that the NBA now appears to be losing. Offence wins over fans. Defense wins championships. They could win both. Even before the current team played their first match in Sydney it had become clear that, while this group of 12 NBA stars might be talented, other teams sensed they were fast closing the gap. They dared to do more than dream about beating the U.S. masters. Lithuania twice dared the U.S. to shoot by packing a tight 2-3 zone defense. It worked. Twice. For all their talk, the Americans could not hit the outside shot they constantly said they would. In the meantime, the eventual bronze medallists ran straight at, and by, the U.S. and their vaunted pressure defense. Aussie fans, notorious for their love of the underdog, booed the U.S. at every chance they had. But they also booed a team who argued more than any other with the referees and opposing players. Could it be the NBA has lost a step, or at least stagnated? That American players, leaving colleges in droves two or three years early, are lacking the fundamentals Bird, Jordan et al won over the world with while foreign players have time to develop into their 20s? Not so, says NBA Commissioner David Stern. HANDPICKED TEAM He admits a U.S. team -- handpicked by the country's basketball officials from the upper echelons of the NBA -- is likely to lose a game sometime soon. But he's quick to add that his league is still "the gold standard by which basketball measures itself" and has some of the greatest athletes in the world. And what is bad for America is good for the sport. "The day (of a loss) is coming, no doubt. It is inevitable. But it's great to see the development of America's sport in the global scale," Stern said. "This is what we had in mind in 1987 when the idea first started to come together. Both FIBA and the NBA agreed that the best thing to do is expose international competition to the NBA, the best basketball that is played anywhere," he said. The U.S. women also retained their title and, with an inspired final win over Australia, gained the respect of the crowd that their male counterparts never got. They talked just as big, for sure. But they backed it up with results. Facing a hostile home crowd in the final and an Australian team that was undefeated, the U.S. women needed to play the game of their lives. STYLE OF PLAY They did more, thoroughly outclassing their opponents by 22 points. "The style of play, we're very exciting below the rim. That's how I like to describe women's basketball: It's a very exciting game below the rim," said guard Teresa Edwards who played in her fifth Olympics and won her fourth gold. "It's well thought out, it's played very hard and intense, and you could miss some things if you did turn your head. Women play very smart. We have to." If spectators at the tournament saw the sport's present while recalling its past, they may also have had a glimpse of its future in Chinese men Yao Ming and Wang Zhizhi and Australian teenage sensation Lauren Jackson. Wang is a 21-year-old, 2.15 meter (7ft 1in) forward who was drafted by the Dallas Mavericks while Yao was the tallest athlete in Sydney at 2.27 meters (7ft 5in). Both are richly talented and, with the NBA desperate to penetrate the huge Chinese market, it cannot be long before one of them becomes the first Chinese to wear an NBA shirt. Jackson, 19, led all women scorers at the tournament and is expected to make the jump to the WNBA sometime soon. "I think she's going to be a great player," said Los Angeles Sparks center Lisa Leslie. "She's got all the tools, inside and out. Defensively, I think she's a very good defensive player, a good shotblocker. She's amazing and she'll have a huge impact in the WNBA," Leslie said.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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